Juan Mata has rejected suggestions that he and Jose Mourinho fell out when the Spaniard was sold to Manchester United by Chelsea in 2014.

The midfielder fell down the pecking order at Stamford Bridge while Mourinho was manager, despite being a prominent figure in the team in previous seasons.

The most surprising aspect of this situation was that Mourinho sanctioned a £37.1m move to Chelsea’s massive rivals midway through the 2013-14 season in January.

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So, when the news was announced that the Portuguese coach was moving to United as Louis van Gaal’s successor, many wondered what would happen to Mata.

The Spaniard was frozen out towards the end of his Chelsea career, but he has become a much more important player for United.

Under Mourinho, the 28-year-old has started 14 Premier League games and has come off the bench in a further six.

In total, Mata has featured 51 times in all competitions, scoring nine goals and creating three assists.

In an interview with the BBC's Premier League Show, Mata spoke about his relationship with Mourinho, insisting that he did not take his Chelsea exit personally.

“Sometimes in life and in football as well, change comes and you have to embrace it. When Jose came I was not playing a lot. I had the chance to go to another great club and it was a good offer for Chelsea as well so that’s how it worked.

“No, [there was no fallout], no I think it was a football reason or a style or something like that but we never had a personal problem. We are working together now and it’s going fine. I was on holiday [when Mourinho was confirmed as United boss] and it was like, ‘OK let’s embrace and lets go for it. Let’s try to play the best football, let’s train as I always train’."

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